15 Basic Things You Can’t Help But Love

Love it or hate it, you can’t argue with the fact that the term “basic” has become totally popular and trendy. This word started making the rounds on social media and in online stories a few years ago and now it’s become pretty mainstream. Sure, it may be a derogatory term for anything that is expected and not super original or unique. And sure, you might be a bit embarrassed that most of what you enjoy in your daily life falls into this category. But sometimes you just have to shrug and give up some control. If you’re basic, you should be proud. There’s not much that you can do about it, anyway, since people like Taylor Swift and things like pumpkin spice lattes have been categorized as basic and it’s not like you can ever give those up.

Here are 15 basic things that you can’t help but love.

15. Coffee

Just call yourself basic and be done with it because you will never, ever give up coffee. You would never even try. You think that people that decide to stop drinking the stuff for a month are absolutely nuts. You can’t even talk to them when they start lecturing you on how much better you would feel if you gave up your fave beverage. They think you would sleep better at night and just have more energy in general… especially if you swapped out your caffeine for some kale juice. Um, no thank you. You’re going to drink your basic coffee and Instagram your basic coffee and you’re going to be perfectly happy about that. It’s truly no big deal, it’s just a part of you, and you are proud to be basic if it means admitting your coffee addiction. You kind of feel like you have to apologize to coffee for getting a reputation as being basic, though. You know it’s so much more than that.

14. Instagramming Your Food

Raise your hand if you Instagram your food. Of course, right? What else is Instagram for? Well, besides pictures of your feet and selfies. And stalking your ex-boyfriend. But that is another story. You can’t help but love the basic activity of Instagramming your food, especially if you are eating something especially trendy and social media worthy like avocado toast or oatmeal. Hey, it is not your fault that this food is so pretty and photogenic. It’s like businesses now do it on purpose to make food so pretty it needs to be taken a picture of. You’re not going to start eating ugly food, though, because that would just be lame and depressing. You’re going to enjoy your beautiful food and Instagram it to your heart’s content and if that’s basic, well, you don’t care. This is just something that you do, and since everyone else on your feed is doing the exact same thing, you really don’t see a problem with it.

13. The Changing Seasons

Is there anything more basic than being glad that it’s finally a new season? Probably not (well, besides the other things on this list). You can’t help but love when the leaves start turning their beautiful golden colors in October. You have to Instagram them every chance you get and, hey, that’s not your fault. That’s just part of the whole deal. You didn’t invent that and you’re not going to feel guilty about that. You totally do the same thing when the snow starts falling in December and when cherry blossoms pop up in April or May. You love the changing seasons because they signify a change and a fresh start. You can always use that, right? Daily life can be full of the same old stuff and it can be tough to find ways to shake up your routine and loving the changing seasons is one way of making your days just a little bit more special.

12. Netflix

Sorry Netflix. You don’t mean anything by this. You just mean that it’s become super basic/super expected to love this streaming service… and this is something that you are 100 percent okay with. What, you’re going to stop watching Netflix just because you’re afraid of being basic? Yup, that’s definitely not happening anytime soon. You are so in love with Netflix, you don’t even know what to say. You love the original content that it provides and shows like Orange Is The New Black have gotten under your skin and made you think and feel. You love revivals like Fuller House and Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life (well, duh, but it needs to be said anyway) and you are so happy that this service has given those shows a new home. You are not giving up your Netflix habit ever and you are so glad that this thing exists. It just makes every day (and every night) about a million times better.

11. Pop Music

When someone asks you what music you listen to, whether it’s a cute boy on your first date or a friend of a friend, you shrug. Because you know the answer: you listen to pop music. Okay, so you throw the odd indie band or alternative rock album in there, but in your heart of hearts, you’re listening to Taylor Swift and Carly Rae Jepsen and Justin Bieber on a daily basis. This is something super basic that you just can’t help. You don’t want to be depressed. In fact, you do all that you can every day to put yourself in a good mood because let’s face it, life can be tough and it can try to get you down. You don’t want to be dragged down. You want to listen to your pop music and smile and be happy. So that’s exactly what you’re going to do. You always wish that you could sound super cool and hipster and come up with some obscure bands that you listen to but that’s just not the case.

10. Specialty Lattes

You get that loving the PSL is super basic… but you do not really care. Because this is a highlight of your fall season and you really would not want it any other way. But you do not stop there. You love specialty lattes of all kinds, from eggnog lattes to gingerbread lattes at Christmas time to non-holiday themed drinks like caramel lattes. You really did not have a chance at not loving this, right? Since you are already predisposed to absolutely adoring coffee, and you already love the PSL aka the gateway specialty coffee drink, you are going to love anything and everything coffee. You just love elevating your daily caffeine infusion to something a bit more sugary and delicious. A girl can’t possibly survive on plain, bitter black coffee alone (no matter how much you adore that). You don’t feel guilty for your basic-ness, though. You just can’t.

9. Hybrid Food

Think of these as a music mash-up but in food form. You’re super into the times when two food items are combined, like the cronut. Sure, these things are super basic and trendy and expected, and you’re not the most original person ever when you eat one of these treats and put them on Instagram. But hey, who cares? You love it. You can’t help but get super excited when you get to enjoy two treats in one. Like come on: a croissant and a donut? You’re into it. There have been a ton of other things like a cruffin (as in a croissant and a muffin) and a fancy milkshake and you’ve wanted to try every single one of these sugary delights, even if you couldn’t find any in your city or town. But a girl can dream of delicious desserts. This kind of thing is just super special and reminds you of being a kid again. It’s pure joy and if it’s basic, well, you don’t care.

8. Podcasts

Yup, it has become super basic to love podcasts, especially in 2016. Podcasts really exploded this year. It really all began with the first season of Serial back in 2014 (which of course you have listened to, right?!) but things definitely got more podcast-obsessed this past year. It is hard not to love the amazing variety of podcasts out there, from health to science to food to television to movies to anything and everything pop culture. Podcasts have made your morning and evening commutes super quick and painless (well, mostly painless). They have made any boring travel moments more tolerable and they lift you up when you need a bit of a mood boost. Needless to say, you adore any and all podcasts and are always looking for new recommendations. You are proud of it and if this is basic, you do not care one bit. Now if only all your friends can feel the same way…

7. Your iPhone

Yup, it’s pretty basic to love your iPhone, but it’s like the odds have been totally stacked against you on this phone. If you’re not supposed to love your iPhone, then why is this such a glorious and wonderful intention? It’s really a beautiful piece of technology and you can’t say enough good things about it. You love that you can download any app that could possibly exist and that you can get any help with your health or life or sleeping habits that you need. You love that you can text your boyfriend and BFF and mom 24/7. You love the emojis (more on that later). You love your social media apps (of course) and you just love having a tiny computer in your purse or pocket. You can’t imagine your life without your lovely iPhone. Sure, sometimes that worries you since you think that you should learn to live without it, but you don’t really want to even consider that.

6. iPhone Complaints

On that note, it is also super basic to complain about your iPhone. New update, anyone? You love complaining about how the latest update is ruining your life and driving you absolutely crazy. You can never believe how annoying and frustrating this is and you can’t help but tell everyone and anyone who will possibly listen. Sure, you get new emojis with every new update which is definitely awesome, but otherwise, you do not get the whole updating thing. It always seems to make things a million times worse. All you know is that when you do this, suddenly your phone runs out of battery power much sooner than normal, and you can’t find any of your apps, and your text messages to your BFF do not seem to be going through. Sorry but you are not that sorry because you can’t help your complaints. It is part of the whole iPhone experience.

5. Memes And Gifs

Can you call yourself a human being in 2016/2017 and not love memes and gifs? Probably not. Okay, maybe that is a little extreme, but jokes aside, you really love these things. You love the fact that you can find a meme for absolutely any situation, whether it is good or bad or in-between, and you can smile and feel instantly better. It is basically like getting therapy ASAP. You also love gifs because they make life and using the Internet so much more fun. You love these things and you can’t even really explain why. They just make you happy and sometimes, you need little moments in your day that cheer you up, no questions asked. Your online browsing and social media use would be a whole lot more boring without the existence of memes and gifs, that’s for sure, and you will never apologize for your love of them.

4. Avocados

Avocados win The Most Basic Food Award and you are super happy with that fact. Because let’s face it, you’re super obsessed with these things. You know that they’re technically a fruit but they are really just glorious and amazing and you don’t care how many you eat in a week. It’s probably more than you’re supposed to but hey, that’s okay. From the insanely basic avocado toast to adding some to your lunchtime salad to your fave snack of chips and guacamole, this is something that you are super happy to add to your diet. You can’t remember why you never used to eat avocados. Maybe you were afraid that you were green (it was a different time, okay?). But you have grown to love this food and you can’t imagine life without it. It may be basic to love avocados but if being basic means eating this well, you’re cool with it.

3. Celeb News

You are absolutely obsessed with celebrities and pop culture and you aren’t even ashamed. Sure, you might have felt that your love of these famous figures was a bit of a guilty pleasure at some point, but you slowly but surely learned to no longer feel any guilt whatsoever. If you love something, you should enjoy it because otherwise there’s really no point. You love celebrity news and follow them on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook. You buy magazines that have your fave people on the cover and you read pretty much everything and anything that has to do with the musicians, actors, actresses, and lifestyle figures that you adore. It’s pretty basic to love celebrities, especially in this day and age, since they are pretty much everywhere and anywhere. They are on every social media platform, they are triple threats (or even more), and they want you to look at their every move. And you’re looking.

2. Emojis

If being basic means loving emojis, then you are 100 percent confident that you are basic and you are absolutely fine with it. You’re going to be so proud of it, you’re going to shout it from the rooftops. Okay, okay, maybe you won’t go quite that far, but you do really love these little things. There is just something so satisfying about using that adorable coffee emoji when you post your morning cup of coffee on a relaxing Saturday afternoon. And you love that with the new update, you can use an avocado emoji to your heart’s content. That just brings you so much joy, you can’t even explain it. When you need to show your love for someone, you send them some pink heart emojis. When you need to make someone laugh, you send that crying/laughing emoji that you really think is super fun. It’s basic but it’s amazing.

1. 90s Nostalgia

The crown jewel on the list of being basic is having some major 90s nostalgia. From plaid shirts to leggings to Full House, from childhood candy to heartthrobs like the boys of *NSYNC and BSB, you love everything about this time period. You think it’s really awesome that everyone you know (and everyone on the Internet as well) is super into the 90s. This just makes you so happy, you can’t even. And it’s definitely the time to be nostalgic about this decade since revivals like Fuller House are thankfully happening. Yup, you’re super in love with the 1990s and you don’t care who knows it. You’re totally proud of it, you’re cool with it, and while you know that it’s basic, that really doesn’t matter to you. So what if you’re basic? You love each and every single one of these things on this list and you couldn’t be happier.